Hitachi ships perpendicular hard drive

Hitachi GST has joined Seagate in shipping a notebook hard drive using perpendicular recording technology. Its Travelstar 5K160, like the Seagate Momentus 5400, spins at 5400rpm and holds 160GB. HItachi claims the drive is the most reliable of its type.

The 5K160 follows on from the existing Travelstar 5K100 which uses traditional longitudinal recording technology to offer 100GB. PMR has delivered a 60 percent capacity boost.

Seagate has already expanded its PMR range to include a 750GB Barracuda.

Hitachi says it will extend the perpendicular magnetic recording (PMR) technology across its hard drive range. We should expect a 1.8inch drive shortly. This could provide 100GB capacity, up from the current 1.8 inch C4K60's 60GB, with lower power consumption due to slower spin-speed of 3600rpm, down from 4200rpm. It should have a 20-percent improvement in read/write power consumption and the fastest power-on-to-ready time for immediacy of data delivery.

The screen was particularly good. It is bright and visible from most angles, however heat is an issue, particularly around the Windows button on the front, and on the back where the battery housing is located.

My first impression after unboxing the Q702 is that it is a nice looking unit. Styling is somewhat minimalist but very effective. The tablet part, once detached, has a nice weight, and no buttons or switches are located in awkward or intrusive positions.

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